I'd Do Anything
by Kuroneko-sama07
Summary: post-series fic, Harry&Melfina! Don't like, don't click! But I like to think this one's a bit different from other H&M fics on this site, maybe a little bit more like Outlaw Star actually is. lol Read and see for yourself if you like. R&R plz!
1. Reunion at Blockbuster

I'd Do Anything  
  
By Kuroneko-sama07  
  
Rated R  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star and I did NOT slip that joint in your backpack, ok?! So for the 3 of you out there who are wondering who did it, IT WASN'T ME!! _;; So yeah, stop hounding me, man!! XD  
  
A/N: OK, Harry/Melfina fic! And I have a big author's note for ya'll, so get ready. ^^ First of all, summary: post-series; Harry gets a new body and goes back to live with Ron. Unfortunately for Gene and co., they move to Cenntinal III. Well, Melfina wants to think Gene loves her like she loves him, but she starts realizing that he doesn't show it as much. And when she finds Gene with another woman one night, well, who better to run to than ol' Harry? Lol, chaos follows as Gene gets pissed, Harry gets pissed, Jim gets pissed, and even Melfina gets pissed!  
  
Now, this could sound like the usual Harry/Mel fics that are all over this website, but it's not...I hope. First of all, Gene is not an abusive drunken bastard. (YAY! Thank you, God!! ^_^) Yes, I have to say that I think we've all had enough of that...And guess what...! The other Outlaw Star characters actually make an appearance! *gasp!* It seems like it's almost forbidden in other H/M fics, but well, not in this one. ^_^ Now, another thing just for the record, I am not against Gene/Mel. I just prefer H/M. Gene just doesn't seem like he's ready to make the committment that Melfina obviously wants. Harry does. That's all! ^_~  
  
Warnings: Rated R for language and sexual situations...*dun dun dun!* Lemon! Yes, folks, lemon. Enjoy it or get over it. And one more warning to be clear: THIS IS HARRY AND MELFINA ROMANCE!!! If you don't like it, get out of here now! And I mean right now! Why would you waste time reading something you don't like? That's stupid. To do that, you just have to be stupid! There's no other explanation! lol OK, like I said, long author's note. It ends now. Yay. lol Enjoy!  
  
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Chapter 1: Reunion at Blockbuster  
  
Melfina walked over to the stereo, picked up the Simple Plan CD, and pressed play. She turned the volume up so she could hear it in the kitchen where she was cooking dinner for everyone.  
  
For some reason, Melfina had actually taken a liking to music by bands like Simple Plan. She figured it was because of Gene and Aisha because rock was all they ever listened to. She smiled to herself as a thought came to mind: That was the only thing those two had in common.  
  
In the kitchen, she found the necessary pots and pans needed and began to get the ingredients she needed for the dish.  
  
Listening to music while cooking had become a very special time in her everyday life. It was a time where she could just forget about all of her worries. Of course, she had always enjoyed cooking, but doing it while listening to music kind of freed her mind in a way. Since she was by herself, she began to sing along with the first song on the CD. It was called "I'd Do Anything" and because it was one of her favorite songs on the CD, she knew almost all of the words.  
  
Everyone else was out and about doing who knows what. Gene and Jim were out job searching, Aisha was at her new job as a waitress at a restuarant, and Suzuka was "taking care of some business." Whatever that means...  
  
"I'd do anything, just to fall asleep with you...," she sang. She wondered if, in any way, that applied to her and Gene. She knew that lately she felt like she would do anything just to enjoy the simple things with Gene. She also knew that no matter what, she'd always do anything for him. But the one thing she could answer was, did he feel the same towards her? Sure, he said he cared about her, he secretely kissed her when no one else was around, and she enjoyed all of that. But lately...it seemed like he wasn't around very much anymore. And she just wished he'd be a little more open with his feelings toward her. She really didn't like how he tried to hide everything. But she quickly shook those thoughts away telling herself she was being too selfish.  
  
A little while later, the door opened and Aisha strolled inside.  
  
"Hey there, Melfina!" she said in a cheery voice, which was kind of unusual for Aisha when she comes home from work.  
  
"Hi, Aisha! You seem like your in a good mood," said Melfina as she walked out of the kitchen to greet Aisha.  
  
"Well, I am! I got my paycheck today!" she said with a grin and a giggle as she pulled out the check. Then, she noticed the music that was playing. "Ooh, Simple Plan!" Then, she danced into the living room all the while waving her check around.  
  
Melfina quietly laughed to herself and walked back into the kitchen. It wasn't too much longer after that when Gene and Jim arrived with Suzuka following afterward.  
  
"Hi, everyone!" said Melfina as they all entered.  
  
They all greeted her and began talking about their days. Suzuka, not pleased with the music she was hearing, walked over and turned off the stereo.  
  
"Hey! Suzu!" yelled Aisha.  
  
"I do not prefer to listen to that type of music and I also do not prefer that nickname," said Suzuka as calm as usual.  
  
Aisha pouted, but soon decided to not let that ruin her great day. She then proceeded to dance about and show off her paycheck...or shove it in their faces while they were talking, but she got her point across.  
  
"Hey, Suzuka," said Gene, "did you take care of that business you were talking about?"  
  
"Yes, I did."  
  
"Well, what'd you have to do?" he asked.  
  
"That is not any of your business, Gene Starwind," she replied.  
  
"Well, you could be right, but this is my place and you are living her for free, I might add, so I think what goes on under my roof is my business," said Gene a bit cockily.  
  
"Yes, you're right, but my business does not go on underneath your roof, so there's no need to worry," she said, completely knowing that she had definitely got him good.  
  
"She's got a point, Gene," said Jim.  
  
Gene frowned and waved his hand carelessly. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."  
  
"Besides, don't you think we should be more worried about getting money seeing as how we found no jobs today?" asked Jim.  
  
"Don't worry about it, Jim. We'll come across some money; we always do," Gene replied. Apparently, even though a few years had gone by, Gene was still the same old Gene.  
  
"Gene!" Jim exclaimed a bit angrily, obviously caring alot more about finding work than Gene. So apparently, Jim was still the same old Jim.  
  
Noticing that, as usual, no one bothered to ask Melfina about her day, she walked back into the kitchen and continued to prepare dinner. Being treated that way really didn't bother her that much. She was used to it. And besides, she didn't do that much during the day anyway, so it was no wonder no one cared. But sometimes, she couldn't help but wish that she could be included, too.  
  
After everyone had eaten dinner, they all sat down in the living room and watched TV. Except for Melfina, of course; she had to clean up the kitchen.  
  
Gene flipped through the channels but couldn't find anything that seemed somewhat interesting.  
  
"Man, there's nothing on!" he exclaimed.  
  
"We could rent a movie," Jim suggested.  
  
"Yeah, let's rent a movie!" said Aisha.  
  
"Well, okay, but what should we get?" Gene asked. Actually, he had a few movies in mind that he'd like to see, but he figured that most likely, no one else would be interested. (a/n: Lol, bad Gene! ^^)  
  
"I always enjoy 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'," said Suzuka.  
  
"Suzuka, we've seen that like three times because of you," replied Gene.  
  
"Well, it's one of my favorite movies," she said. "I wish we could see 'The Last Samurai', but it's not out on video yet."  
  
"Yeah," said Jim. He was trying to think of some good movies, too. "How about 'Star Wars: Episode 2'?"  
  
"No, I am not watching another Star Wars movie," Gene said firmly. "After the first 5 times, they get a little old."  
  
"Yeah, I guess you're right," said Jim.  
  
"How about a scary movie?" said Aisha.  
  
"Oddly enough, I actually enjoyed 'The Ring'," said Suzuka.  
  
"Yeah, it was good, but it wasn't scary," Gene said.  
  
"Well, 'Darkness Falls' was pretty scary," said Jim.  
  
"Nah, not scary enough," Gene insisted.  
  
"Well, how scary does it have to be?" replied Jim.  
  
"Look, if you're gonna watch a scary movie, it might as well be one that's gonna make you piss your pants!" Gene exclaimed.  
  
"Actually," said Suzuka, "I'd prefer to avoid that."  
  
"Well, what about a funny movie?" Aisha suggested.  
  
"'American Pie 2' was good, but I don't think we ever saw 'American Wedding'," Gene said.  
  
"Man, I don't want to watch either of those freakin' porn movies!" said Jim.  
  
"They're not porn movies!" Gene argued.  
  
"Yeah, you would know," Jim shot back.  
  
Gene didn't respond. "OK, since some people are too immature to watch those movies--"  
  
"I'm not immature!" Jim yelled.  
  
Just as Gene was about to yell something back, Melfina walked in.  
  
"Well, if you don't mind, I have a suggestion," she said.  
  
"Go ahead, Melfina," said Gene.  
  
"I've been wanting to see 'How to Deal'," she said.  
  
"That's a chick flick!" exclaimed both Gene and Jim.  
  
"Well, I wouldn't mind seeing a little romance," said Aisha.  
  
"Yes, I wouldn't mind seeing that movie either. Mandy Moore did well in 'A Walk to Remember'," agreed Suzuka.  
  
"Then, 'How to Deal' it is!" Aisha exclaimed happily.  
  
"No! Jim and I don't want to watch that!" said Gene.  
  
"Three against two, Gene. Majority rules," said Suzuka with a small smirk.  
  
Melfina smiled to herself at hearing that everyone--well, mostly everyone-- agreed on her choice.  
  
Gene frowned. "Fine...," he said as he turned to Melfina. "Well, since it was your brilliant idea, why don't you go rent it for us?"  
  
Melfina agreed, Gene gave her a few bucks, and she headed out for the movie rental store.  
  
It was getting dark outside, and Melfina really didn't like walking around at night, but thankfully, her destination wasn't that far off. It was only a few blocks away.  
  
After just several minutes of walking, she made it to the store. She walked in and searched around for the right movie. Finally, she found it, but there didn't seem to be any left. Thankfully, there was one left, so she grabbed it and walked over to the cashier. There was a bit of a line, so she had to wait.  
  
While she was waiting, she felt someone tap her on her shoulder from behind. She quickly turned around and couldn't believe who she saw.  
  
"Melfina?!" the aqua-haired man exclaimed.  
  
"Harry?!" exclaimed Melfina.  
  
"Wow, is it really you?" Harry asked, almost like it was too good to be true.  
  
"Yes, I can't believe it's really you!" she said with a smile. She was shocked to see someone she thought had died a few years ago standing right in front of her.  
  
"Hey, Ron! Look who it is!" Harry called to his older brother who had his back turned to him and was looking at something a little ways off. Upon hearing Harry's voice, he turned around and walked over.  
  
"Well, it's Melfina! Surprised to see you here," he said.  
  
"Well, actually, I think I'm more surprised than the both of you. I thought you two had...well, died at the Galactic Leyline," she said.  
  
"It's kind of a long story...," said Ron.  
  
"My memory was transferred onto the El Dorado, so I got a new body made. It took a couple of years, but at least I'm back," said Harry. "And Ron...well, he was badly injured from his fight with Hazanko, and it took him a long time to recover, but he's okay now."  
  
"Oh, wow...," said Melfina. It was still hard for her to believe that they were both alright.  
  
"But anyway," said Ron, "what brings you here?"  
  
"Well, Gene lives here on Cenntinal III," she replied.  
  
Immediately, Harry said, "You're still with Gene?"  
  
Melfina nodded and she knew by Harry's tone of voice and the expression on his face that he still wanted her. There was a bit of awkward silence after that, but thankfully, someone broke it. However, that "someone" was the cashier.  
  
"Um, excuse me, ma'am," came the cashier's voice.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry," Melfina said quickly as she turned around. She paid for the movie and was about to leave when Harry called to her.  
  
"Hey, Melfina, do you mind waiting for us? We're ready to check out, too, and I'd like to talk to you some more," he said.  
  
"Okay," she said. It was only a minute or two and then they were ready to go.  
  
"So...," Harry started as they all walked outside. He didn't really have anything important to say; he just wanted to talk to Melfina. "How have things been these past few years?"  
  
"They've been fine," she said pleasantly. "There hasn't been much excitement, though. But really, I think we're all better off without it."  
  
Harry laughed a little, and then Ron seemed to have remembered something as they passed another store. "Oh, Harry, I just remembered I need to pick up some things here."  
  
"Alright, I'll see you back home," Harry replied.  
  
With that, Ron entered the store. Then, it was just Harry and Melfina.  
  
For a few minutes, they silently walked. Neither of them really knew what to say. There was alot of things they wanted to say, but they didn't think they should. One thing Harry definitely wanted to bring up was Gene. He wanted to find out all about their relationship, but he didn't think Melfina would be comfortable telling him. He debated that with himself for a couple more minutes, but finally, he decided to go for it. He had nothing to lose anyway.  
  
"Uh...so...how are things between you and Gene?" he asked. Then, as if amending his first question, he said, "I mean, what happened between you two after the Leyline?"  
  
His question made Melfina a little nervous, but she answered. "Well, I guess alot has happened...We became closer for one..."  
  
"Oh," was all Harry could say. He knew that meant that they were probably together...as a couple. He thought there'd be no chance of him getting her now. But was that going to stop him? Not a chance.  
  
"So...what about you?" Melfina asked. "Do you have anyone new?"  
  
"No, no," Harry said quickly. "I...uh, haven't had time."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Once again, they walked in silence.  
  
"Well, I really need to be going," said Melfina. "I'm sure everyone is wondering where I am."  
  
"Oh, well, I'll walk you," he offered.  
  
"I'd like you to, but I don't think Gene would be too happy if he found out. I'm sorry. I just don't want to cause any trouble," she said.  
  
"That's okay, but...," Harry started as he pulled out a slip of paper and a pen from his back pocket. He quickly wrote down what looked like an address and a phone number. He handed it to Melfina. "It's the address and number to me and Ron's apartment. If you ever are free and want to do something, just come over or call."  
  
She put the paper in her pocket and smiled. "Thanks, Harry. It would be nice to see you again. Maybe we can get coffee or something later on."  
  
A smile spread across his face. "Sure, I'd love that." He tried to contain his enthusiasm, but it was really hard. He knew Melfina had noticed.  
  
"Well, I'll see you later," she said as she started walking off.  
  
"Bye!" Harry called to her before walking off himself.  
  
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Well, that ends chapter 1! Kinda short, I know. ^^ Sorry 'bout that! I just thought that was a good place to end it. Anyway, more good stuff is yet to come so tell me what you think! ^_^ Right now, I'm thinking this might only be a 3 chapter fic, but you never know, it could be longer. I doubt it's going to be any longer than 5 chapters, though. If you think that's not very long, don't worry cuz I plan to make the next chapters much longer. ...I hope. lol ^^;; See ya in chapter 2! 


	2. Someone's in the Kitchen with Gene

I'd Do Anything  
  
By Kuroneko-sama07  
  
A/N: Well, I'm back with Chapter 2! ^_^ Some very interesting stuff happens in this chapter, so if you're liking it so far, ya better keep reading! ^^ This one's good but kinda sad, too, to the sensitive reader. lol No, the lemon isn't in this chapter! That would be WAY too fast, but don't worry, it will be soon just bear with me. lol Like I said last time, this might only be a 3 chapter fic, but it could be 5. Or 4. I'm hoping 5. I just need some more stuff to fill these chapters! Hopefully, I'll get some good ideas soon. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! ^_^  
  
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Chapter 2: Someone's in the Kitchen with Gene  
  
Melfina thought about the movie they watched the other day as she placed the dishes from breakfast in the dish washer. She thought the movie was very good, and it seemed like Aisha and Suzuka agreed for the most part, but Gene and Jim...they basically slept through the whole thing. Well, mostly Jim slept. She didn't think he actually intended to, but after about 30 minutes, he was out.  
  
Gene, on the other hand, sat by Melfina, which made her happy. She liked being near him. She guessed the romance in the movie had gotten to him because he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. But then, after a little over an hour, he fell asleep as well. Melfina remembered how his head leaned on hers, but she didn't ever push him away.  
  
Even though Gene didn't stay awake during the entire movie, Melfina loved being with him. She loved how he had acted toward her that night and how kind he had been. There was only seldom times when he did things like that, and Melfina looked forward to them always. But she couldn't help but wish for more...  
  
"Hey, Mel," said Gene as he walked up behind her. Since no one was around, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and stood beside her.  
  
"Hi, Gene," Melfina said with a smile. She placed the last dish in the dish washer and washed her hands.  
  
"Gene...why do you only do things like that when no one else is around?" she asked. That wasn't exactly what she wanted to talk to him about, but she did it anyway. She wanted to tell him about running into Harry and Ron, but she decided not to because she knew Gene would probably be angry. From some reason, she felt like she didn't want him to be angry with Harry.  
  
He shrugged. "I don't know. I've never really noticed it before."  
  
"Oh," was all Melfina could say. She knew that he knew what he was doing. She knew he had noticed it. But whether or not he knew why he acted differently around her when other people were around...that was a completely different story.  
  
Gene must have sensed that she was a little disappointed. He placed his hand underneath her chin and tilted her head up so he could look her in the eyes.  
  
"Hey, come on now," he said, "I'm sorry."  
  
Melfina looked back into his eyes, but she didn't say anything.  
  
"Look, I'll make it up to you. Why don't we do something tonight just you and me?"  
  
She thought about it for a moment and then agreed. His apology had been fake, but he gave her a smile that just wouldn't allow her to say no.  
  
***  
  
Later on that evening, after everyone had come home, Gene and Melfina went out. They chose a restuarant that wasn't too far from where they lived, so they decided to just walk there. Melfina was surprised that while they walked, Gene held her hand. Yes, she was surprised, but no, she was not complaining.  
  
Finally, they arrived at the restuarant and they sat down at a booth that was a little ways away from where the crowd sat. Melfina guessed Gene wanted to be alone with her, which made her extremely happy.  
  
The restuarant was pretty nice; not real fancy, but it was nice. It was fairly dark inside; each table had a small individual light fixture hanging over the center of the table. There was a bar over on the right side of the room, but there weren't that many people sitting at it that night, so there wasn't alot of noise.  
  
A few minutes after they sat down, the waitress came by and took their drink orders. Gene ordered a beer and Melfina just chose tea. Melfina noticed that as the waitress walked off, Gene's eyes seemed to follow her, but she could understand why. The waitress was very attractive. She was fairly tall, very thin, had blonde hair and blue eyes, and tanned skin. It was easy to see why she would catch any man's eye.  
  
They talked a little bit about nothing in particular while they waited, but after only a few minutes, the waitress returned with their drinks.  
  
Time passed, Gene and Melfina ordered their meals, but everytime the waitress would come back to them, Melfina noticed Gene was flirting with her, and of course, the waitress was flirting right back with him. This made Melfina very uneasy and a bit upset because he was supposed to be on a date with her, not the waitress.  
  
Gene must have noticed the unpleasant expression on Melfina's face. She didn't want him to notice, but like always, he did. He could always tell how she was feeling. When the waitress walked off again, Gene gently placed his hand on Melfina's.  
  
"What's wrong, Mel?" he asked. He had a good idea of why she was a bit upset, but he just wanted to ask her to be sure.  
  
"Nothing, Gene. I'm fine," she said quietly. There was a few seconds of silence as Melfina tried to decide what to say next and Gene tried to figure out why she was lying to him. Finally, she continued, "Gene...do you think of us as...you know...together?" For some reason, she felt a little shy about asking him.  
  
"Well, we're together right now, but I'm guessing you mean together as a couple. Am I right?" Gene asked.  
  
Melfina nodded.  
  
"Well, of course! If I didn't, we wouldn't be out on a date right now," Gene replied.  
  
Hearing this made Melfina feel happy but confused at the same time. If he did think of them as a couple, then why was he flirting with the waitress?  
  
"I'm sorry for asking, Gene," Melfina said, "but I just didn't know how you felt about us. I just wanted to know."  
  
"It's okay, Mel. You don't have to apologize," Gene reassured her.  
  
A small smile formed on Melfina's face. "It's just that...sometimes I think that I'm just a friend to you instead of something more."  
  
"Melfina...," Gene whispered, "you'll always be something more to me."  
  
Melfina couldn't help but smile at that. She believed him; she could look into his eyes and tell he was being sincere.  
  
"After all, would friends do this?" he asked as he quickly leaned in and pressed his lips against hers. When they pulled away, a slight blush had appeared on Melfina's cheeks.  
  
Gene smiled, and since he knew the waitress thing was what had bothered Melfina in the first place, he added, "And don't worry, Mel. As long as we're together, it's just going to be you and me. No one else. I promise."  
  
"Thank you, Gene," she said. Melfina loved hearing that, and she believed him completely. Sure, she knew he had been flirting with the waitress, but she didn't care about that anymore. She forgave him instantly. She always did. There was just something about Gene that wouldn't let her stay mad at him.  
  
***  
  
After forcing herself to stay up until 11:30 at night, Melfina finally decided to go to sleep. She was worried about where Gene was, but fatigue overruled worry, so she walked into her bedroom and got settled in her comfy bed. However, she found it was difficult to get to sleep with so many things on her mind.  
  
It had been about a week since she went out with Gene and he made her that promise. But now, Melfina didn't even know where he was. He told her earlier that day that he was going out to a bar, but it was pretty late for him to still be out. She told herself that he was probably just really drunk, goofing off with friends, and didn't have any recollection of time and that he'd be home soon. With that thought in mind, she finally drifted off to sleep.  
  
Later on that night, she woke up. Her throat felt very dry, so she decided to get up and get a glass of water.  
  
As she walked into the kitchen, she wondered if Gene was home yet. The clock read 1:30am, and Melfina figured he was probably passed out in his room.  
  
She grabbed a small glass from the kitchen cabinet and filled it with some water. As she began to walk out of the kitchen, she heard the front door open. ~What? Is Gene coming in now?~ she thought to herself, but as she listened, she not only heard Gene's voice but someone else's as well. It was a woman.  
  
Melfina immediately hid herself on the other side of the refrigerator. She didn't know what to do; millions of thoughts were racing through her mind all at once. Her heart was pounding so loud that she thought if Gene and the woman weren't talking and laughing so loud, they could have heard it.  
  
Melfina could tell they were moving closer to the kitchen as their voices became louder. But then the sound of voices changed...into the sound of something else. Melfina's eyes grew wide as she peeked around the refrigerator and almost fainted at what she saw.  
  
The woman was sitting on top of the kitchen counter with her long legs wrapped around Gene's body. Melfina could see Gene's hands slip underneath the woman's shirt. The woman was giggling and moaning and disgust grew inside Melfina as she watched them share such sloppy kisses.  
  
Melfina was in such a state of shock and disgust that her glass of water slipped out of her hands. She inhaled sharply as the sound of the glass shattering against the floor met her ears. She looked up and Gene and the woman who were now staring at her.  
  
Tears began to fill up in Melfina's eyes that made a connection with Gene's. "Gene...," she whispered. Her voice and eyes were full of pain and sadness and Gene heard it all.  
  
"Melfina...," he whispered in response. He knew he had definitely screwed up this time.  
  
Melfina dropped to her knees and began collecting pieces of glass in her hands. She could barely see the glass because of the tears overflowing from her eyes, but she didn't care. She felt sharp pieces prick her fingers, but still, she didn't care. She didn't know if she cared about anything anymore...  
  
Gene slowly walked over to Melfina and the girl followed. He knelt down and placed his hand on Melfina's shoulder. "Mel...are you alright?" he asked her. He knew that was a stupid thing to ask, but he didn't know what else to say.  
  
"I'm fine," came Melfina's quiet and shaky voice.  
  
"Do you want me to help you clean this up?" Gene asked.  
  
"No, that's okay. I'll clean it up myself," she replied.  
  
Gene stood back up but kept his eyes on Melfina. The girl, however, had other plans.  
  
"Oh, come on, Gene, let's go back to your room," she said seductively.  
  
"No...," he said quietly.  
  
"Didn't you hear her, Gene? She said she didn't need any help."  
  
"No!" he yelled as he pushed the woman away.  
  
"But Gene--" the woman pleaded.  
  
"Just go, okay?!" Gene was much angrier now. He was angry at the woman, he was angry at Melfina for catching them, but more importantly...he was angry with himself for hurting the one thing that meant the most to him. Melfina.  
  
The woman scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Fine," was her only reply as she grabbed her purse and stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind her.  
  
There was an extremely awkward silence as Melfina finished gathering the last pieces of glass, threw them away, and then got a towel to wipe up the water on the floor.  
  
"Melfina," Gene said quietly, "...I'm sorry."  
  
Melfina stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. "It's okay, Gene," she said. She forced a smile onto her face even though the pain she felt then was stabbing at her heart like a knife.  
  
Gene didn't know what else to say. He figured that right then, Melfina probably didn't want anything to do with him. He figured that whatever he said wouldn't make it any better anyway.  
  
Melfina finished cleaning the floor and placed the wet towel by the sink. Then she stood and just looked at Gene. Then, without saying anything, she turned and went back to her room. As soon as she opened the door, the tears were stinging her eyes once again. She had to get out for a while...  
  
She grabbed a pair of jeans that were laying around and slipped them on. She then took off her nightshirt and pulled a white tank top down over her head. She slipped on her shoes and exited her bedroom.  
  
When she came to the living room, Gene was sitting on the couch. She could make out his figure in the dark. He seemed to be in deep thought. But as she walked closer, he snapped out of it and turned his attention toward Melfina.  
  
"Where are you going?" he asked as he stood up and walked over to her.  
  
"Um...nowhere. I'm just...I'm just going to get some fresh air," she said while fighting back even more tears.  
  
"You're going to come back, aren't you?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, of course," she said. She was trying to sound like she was alright, but it wasn't working out too well. She started to walk to the door, but Gene stopped her as he gently grabbed her arm.  
  
"I really am sorry," he said quietly.  
  
She forced another smile onto her face. "Yeah, I know you are," she said. And she really did know he was sorry, but what he did was a very big deal and only time would heal these newly created scars. Just an apology wouldn't cover it all this time.  
  
He let go of her arm and watched the most important thing in his life walk out the door. But what hurt him the most was that he was the one that made her walk out that door. She wasn't leaving because she wanted to. She wasn't leaving because she wanted to hurt him. She was leaving because he hurt her.  
  
Gene knew she had said that she would come back and that she was only going out for a bit of air, but...he didn't really believe her. She had just said that so she wouldn't make Gene worry. She always did things like that. She never wanted anyone to worry and she always wanted to please everyone...even when no one wanted to please her.  
  
Gene didn't want Melfina to leave. Hell, the last thing he would ever want was for Melfina to leave. But she just did. And there was nothing he could do about it now. Gene did love Melfina, but somehow...it just wasn't enough to keep her. And that's something Gene knew he would have to live with for the rest of his life.  
  
Gene ran his fingers through his red hair. "What's wrong with me?" he quietly asked himself. Then, he repeated it a little bit louder and with much more anger, "What the hell is wrong with me?!"  
  
Pangs of sadness and regret were stabbing at his heart. He wanted it all to go away. He wanted all of this to have never happened. But he couldn't rewind life. He wanted to believe that it was all a dream and that he'd wake up and Melfina would be there...happy and cheerful like always. But he couldn't go back to that. He could never go back to that... Everything had changed now...Nothing was going to be the same.  
  
"Dammit...," he whispered in anger, and then yelled, "Dammit!!"  
  
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Well, end of chapter 2! Still not much longer than chapter 1, but I figured that this is a good length for my chapters that way I can probably make it to 5 chapters with this fic. ^^ But man, depressing chapter! I don't know about ya'll, but I'm about to cry and I'm the one writing here! Sheesh...I need to tone down on the drama a bit, eh? ...Nah! More depressing drama and angst is on the way in chapter 3! I'll see you then. ^_~ 


	3. Melfina, Where For Art Thou?

I'd Do Anything  
  
By Kuroneko-sama07  
  
A/N: Thanks so much everyone for reviewing! Appreciate it. ^^ Well, I'm back with Chapter 3! ^_^ And this one is pretty good. ^^ But let's recap: Last time, Gene made a promise to Melfina that he would always want her in his life and that it would only be her, no one else. But he broke that promise when Melfina caught him one night with another woman. Shocked, depressed, and heart-broken, Melfina did the only thing she knew to do. She left. So...where's she gonna go? What's she gonna do? Let's find out, shall we? ^_~  
  
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Chapter 3: Melfina...Where For Art Thou?  
  
Rain poured down and soaked Melfina as she ran down the street. Tears were flowing from her eyes once again, but because of the rain, it was hard to tell what was rain and what was tears. She wished it wasn't raining. She didn't want to get wet; she wanted to go back to Gene's apartment and dry off. But she couldn't go back...not now.  
  
After a few minutes of running, she stopped. She realized she had no idea where she was going. She didn't know what to do anymore. She kept telling herself that there must be somewhere she could go, but no place came to her mind.  
  
She continued to walk down the street in the rain only because she didn't know anything else to do. She was so confused; too much had happened. She just needed some time to think it all over.  
  
As she continued walking, she came across a homeless person sitting on the ground with a cup that had some change in it. Melfina, being the generous person she is, felt very sorry for him and decided to give him a little money. She saw his eyes light up as she fished her hand deep inside her jean pocket and searched for some spare change. But instead of finding change, she found a small slip of paper. She pulled it out and her eyes grew wide as she realized what it was.  
  
"Uh, I'm sorry, I don't have any change," she said hurriedly as she took off running.  
  
~I can't believe this is still in my pocket!~she thought as she looked at the piece of paper that Harry had given her a week or two ago. She hoped that Harry was at home and that he'd let her stay the night, but as she thought about it, she figured he would. After all, she knew that he was still in love with her, so why wouldn't he let her stay?  
  
Finally, after several minutes of running, she came to what she thought was Harry and Ron's apartment building. Their apartment number was B4, which was on the second floor. She raced up the flight of stairs and then ran down the hallway until she reached the right door.  
  
She was a little hesitant at first to knock only because it was almost two in the morning and she figured they probably weren't expecting anyone over...especially her. But anxious to dry off and get inside the warm apartment, her fist rapped on the door. After only a minute or two (but it seemed like an eternity for Melfina), Ron came to the door.  
  
"Mel-Melfina?? What in the hell are you doing here?" he asked, completely bewildered and shocked to find a drenched Melfina standing in his doorway at two o' clock in the morning.  
  
"I'm so sorry," she said, "Did I wake you? I just...really need somewhere to stay."  
  
"Nah, it's okay," he said. "And of course you can stay. Look, come on in and dry off. You can explain later if you want."  
  
She accepted his offer and walked inside.  
  
"Hey, Harry, look who's here," called Ron.  
  
Harry walked into the living room and, just like Ron, was shocked to see a drenched Melfina standing there.  
  
"Melfina??" he asked as he rushed over to her. "What's wrong? What are you doing here?"  
  
She smiled at the attention she was getting. "Well, it's a really long story and I don't know if I want to talk about it, but I guess I do owe you both an explanation." Just as she said that, she felt a strong hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Ron smiling down at her.  
  
"Melfina, you don't have to tell us anything right now if you don't want to," he said reassuringly.  
  
"Yeah, Ron's right," Harry agreed. "Come on, let's get you dried off and I'll show you where you can stay." With that said, he took Melfina by the hand and lead her into a bedroom.  
  
"This is my room, but you can sleep in here for tonight. I'll sleep on the couch," he said.  
  
"Oh, no, Harry, let me sleep on the couch. I don't want to kick you out of your room," she said politely.  
  
"Melfina, don't worry about it. You're not kicking me out of my room; I want you to stay in here. Besides, you're the guest," he said with a smile.  
  
"Oh, thank you so much, Harry. You really don't have to do all this," she said.  
  
"I know, but...I want to," he said quietly as he looked into her eyes, which did make Melfina a little nervous, but at that time, she didn't mind.  
  
"Well, I'll be right back. Let me get you a towel." He walked off, but only a minute later, he returned with a towel.  
  
"Thank you," said Melfina as Harry handed her the towel.  
  
"And since your clothes are soaked, I guess you need something to change into," he said as he quickly looked her over; although, his eyes wished to linger on her longer because the drenched, thin garments clung to her in all the right places. He dug around in some drawers in his dresser and pulled out a t-shirt with a pair of shorts.  
  
"Here," he said as he handed the clothes to her. "They're mine, so they're probably not going to fit well, but they'll have to do for now. Well, I'll leave you so you can get changed and all. If you want to take a shower, feel free to; the bathroom is right across the hall."  
  
Melfina thanked him and he left, shutting the door behind him. Before stripping of her wet clothes, she took a minute to look around his room. It didn't have very many things in it; a double bed, a dresser, a full-length mirror on the back of the door, and a small desk with a chair over in one corner. The walls were plain white, but there were a few posters here and there. But then she noticed something on the wall beside his bed. She walked closer and saw that there were a small collection of pictures of herself and Gene. But each picture of Gene had a dart through it. Melfina couldn't help but giggle at that; she knew Harry had drove the darts through those pictures.  
  
After viewing her surroundings, she began to take off her wet garments and dry herself off with the towel. As she pulled on the dry clothes Harry had let her borrow, she decided she would decline his offer of taking a shower. She was really too tired and she figured she could take one tomorrow.  
  
After she had pulled the large t-shirt over her head, she began to towel dry her wet hair. Once she saw that it was dried as much as it would get, she gathered the towel and wet clothes in her arms and walked out of the room.  
  
She entered the living room and saw Harry sitting on the couch watching TV.  
  
"Um, Harry? What should I do with these?" she said, showing him the wet bundle.  
  
"Oh, here, hand 'em to me," he said as he got up and took the bundle from her arms. "I'll put 'em in the drier so they'll be ready for you in the morning." Melfina thanked him and he walked off.  
  
Melfina took this time to look around the living room. There was a couch with a coffee table in front of it, a TV, a stereo in the corner, and a recliner beside the couch. It was fairly nice; it just looked like a normal living room. Melfina walked over to the couch and sat down. She looked at the TV and saw that Harry was watching "Monster Garage". She was familiar with the program; Gene and Jim had watched it several times.  
  
Finally, Harry returned and came and sat down beside Melfina.  
  
"You can go to bed if you want," he said. "I'm staying up; I'm not really tired."  
  
"Oh, well, I am tired, actually. But may I sit in here with you for a little while? I mean, if you don't mind," she said.  
  
"Of course you can! I don't mind at all," he said. He placed his hand on Melfina's, which caught her attention and she gave him a questioning look. But Harry being, well, Harry, ignored that and just stared into her eyes and smiled. "I'm really glad to have you here, Melfina."  
  
She returned the smile, but slowly moved her hand away. "Yes, if I wasn't here under the circumstances, I'd be happy, too."  
  
"Yeah, do you think you want to tell me about that yet...or not?" he asked. "I mean, you can do whatever you want. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."  
  
Melfina heard those words, but the look in his eyes told her that he was dying to know what happened. "I'll tell you," she said.  
  
"Really?" he asked. "I mean, you think you want to?"  
  
She nodded. "You deserve to know. But first, where's Ron? I thought he wanted to know, too."  
  
"Yeah, but he went to bed. He was just about to go to bed when you knocked on the door, so I'm sure he's out by now. I'll tell him about tomorrow," Harry replied.  
  
"Oh, okay."  
  
Harry grabbed the remote off the coffee table and put the TV on mute. "So, tell me what happened."  
  
"Well,..." Melfina started. She really didn't know how to put the events in words, nor did she want to, but she knew she needed to tell Harry. He had done alot for her, after all. But finally, she began telling the sad but true story.  
  
Harry listened silently and Melfina's quievering voice made his heart ache. With each sentence, she came more and more closer to tears. Harry knew this, and he did not want to see her cry.  
  
As she neared the most important sentence, she didn't think she could hold it in any longer. She wanted so badly to cry once again, but she felt embarrassed to in front of Harry.  
  
Feeling the tears coming to her eyes once again, Melfina stopped talking. She didn't know if the words could come out without her bursting into tears.  
  
"Melfina?" Harry asked quietly as he laid his hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"  
  
She nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. It's just that...," she started to say something, but stopped and wiped a few tears from her eyes.  
  
"It's just that what?" he asked.  
  
She didn't answer.  
  
"Melfina, do you want to tell me what happened next? You were saying that you moved out from behind the refrigerator and you saw something. What did you see?" he asked.  
  
"I saw...," her voice was shaking badly and more tears were coming to her eyes. "I saw...Gene...with some other...woman," she finally said, but just as the last words came out of her mouth, she couldn't hold it in any longer. She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears.  
  
Harry immediately wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. She buried her face in his chest and continued to cry. Harry hated seeing Melfina like this and hearing what Gene had done made him angry.  
  
"He promised me!" she exclaimed between sobs.  
  
Harry ran his fingers through her soft hair to soothe and calm her. "Melfina...it's okay," he whispered, "It's okay."  
  
"But he promised me!" she said again.  
  
Harry placed his hands on her shoulders and gently pulled her away from him so he could see her face. He placed his hands on the sides of her face and wiped away a few tears with his thumbs. "What do you mean? What did he promise you?"  
  
"He promised me that...that it would always be just us and no one else," she said, but she began to sob again as she exclaimed, "He broke his promise!"  
  
Harry wrapped his arms around her waist and Melfina shyly placed her arms around his neck. He gently nuzzled her neck to soothe her and he could smell the sweet scent of her hair. He wanted so badly to do so much more with her, and he figured that at this moment he could, but that was only because she was so vulnerable. And he was not going to take advantage of her when she was vulnerable.  
  
But soon, his thoughts returned to what she had said about the promise Gene had made her. He thought it was just like Gene to make such a promise and then do exactly the opposite. Harry hated seeing Melfina so sad. And knowing that it was Gene that caused this enraged him.  
  
"Melfina...stay here with me. Forever," he said. "Don't ever go back to Gene. He doesn't deserve you."  
  
At hearing this, Melfina slowly pulled away and her eyes met his. "Harry...I don't know if I can..."  
  
"Of course you can! Please, Melfina...I need you. I want you. I...love you. Gene doesn't!"  
  
"But Harry...he does. He just--" Harry cut her off.  
  
"What do you mean, 'he does'?! No, he doesn't! Didn't you see him with that other woman? Didn't he break his promise to you? He doesn't love you like I do! He never will!" Harry exclaimed.  
  
"Harry, you don't understand..."  
  
"No, you don't understand, Melfina!" yelled Harry. "You don't understand how I feel about you! How much I care about you! How I think about you every minute of every day! How I long to be near you! It's you who doesn't understand, Melfina! Why can't I make you understand?!" Just then, he realized he repeated the same phrase he used when he and Melfina first met. And just then, he wished he had never said it.  
  
Immediately, more tears came to Melfina's eyes and Harry knew that this time, he had caused them.  
  
Just then, Ron walked in.  
  
"Hey, Harry, I'm trying to sleep, but it's kinda hard with all that yelling," he said. "And what's going on, anyway?"  
  
"Nothing, Ron. Sorry," Harry replied as he ran his hand through his long locks of aqua hair.  
  
"Well, just keep it down," he said as he walked off back to his room. He decided to stay out of that one. Smart man.  
  
Harry and Melfina were both silent for what was only a few minutes but it seemed like forever. Finally, Melfina spoke up.  
  
"I should have never come here," she said quietly and as she was about to stand up, Harry grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.  
  
"Melfina, I'm sorry," he said. "I...I didn't mean to yell at you. I just get so...aggravated. You always stand up for Gene, even when he hurts you so bad."  
  
"I know I do, but...no matter what it seems like, Gene does care about me," she said.  
  
"How can you say that?"  
  
"Because I know it's true. I can see it in his eyes. He does care about me. He does need me. He does want me. He does...love me, but...I don't know if it's the same kind of love that I want, you know?" she explained.  
  
"Melfina...you'll never get the kind of love you want staying with him. But I...I can give you the kind of love you want," Harry said quietly. "I don't want you to cry. I don't want to make you cry. You do know that, don't you?"  
  
"Yes...I know," she said. "Gene's the same way. He doesn't want me to cry, but he's the one who makes me..."  
  
Harry didn't like that she was comparing him to Gene, but he decided to not let that get to him. "Melfina, I'll always be here for you. If you ever want me, I'm here. I'll give you whatever you want. I'll give you whatever kind of love you want. Know that."  
  
"Thank you, Harry," she said quietly.  
  
"So, what are you going to do? What about Gene?" he asked.  
  
She shrugged her shoulders and sighed. "I don't know. I have to think about it. This has just been too much for one day."  
  
"Yeah, I understand," Harry replied.  
  
"Well," said Melfina as she wiped away any remaining tears, "I guess I should go to bed. I'm very tired and my head hurts from all that crying."  
  
"Uh, Melfina, before you go...," said Harry. "Do you remember the last time we saw each other on the Galactic Leyline? We were in cyber space."  
  
"Yes, I remember," she said as a small blush formed on her cheeks at remembering the events that took place then.  
  
"Do you think...I could finish what I started?" he asked.  
  
Melfina knew exactly what he was talking about and a small smile formed on her face. "Well...alright," she agreed.  
  
He smiled back at her, and slowly leaned in closer to her. Finally, he pressed his lips against hers. His kiss was firm but gentle at the same time. His lips were warm and Melfina was surprised that she was enjoying the kiss. She was almost dissappointed when he pulled away.  
  
"Well...good night," she said as she stood up.  
  
"Good night," Harry said.  
  
As she walked into Harry's room, a smile played on her lips and she just couldn't make it go away. And she knew Harry was wearing the same smile.  
  
***  
  
"Hey, Gene!" called Jim from the kitchen. "Where's Melfina? Shouldn't she be in here cooking breakfast?"  
  
"Nah, she...she went out somewhere," Gene replied abruptly. He didn't really want to relate last night's events to Jim.  
  
"When'd she leave?"  
  
Why was he so obsessed with where Melfina was?!, Gene kept asking himself. "I don't know! Don't ask me!"  
  
"Well, I'm just wonderin'. You don't have to get all mad, Gene," Jim said.  
  
"I'm not getting mad!" Gene lied. He really was getting aggravated with Jim. He didn't want to think about what had happened the night before. He didn't want to talk about it. And he definitely didn't want to think about Melfina.  
  
"Well, you sure do sound like it!" Jim snapped back.  
  
"I'm only getting annoyed 'cause all you're asking about is Melfina! Melfina, this! Melfina, that! I'm not her caretaker, Jim! It's not my job to find out where she goes and what she's doing!" Gene yelled.  
  
"Yeah, but she's your girlfriend!" Jim yelled back.  
  
Because of that, Gene had no choice but to not respond. Jim was right...Melfina 'was' his girlfriend...but he was supposed to treat her like one.  
  
"Whatever, Jim. I don't want to talk about it anymore," Gene replied in a surly tone. He walked back into the living room and sat down on the couch.  
  
Jim was silent after that; it was too early to be arguing with Gene. But somehow, Jim just knew something was up...something had happened between Gene and Melfina. He could sense it in Gene's attitude. And Jim knew something for sure--if he found out Gene did something to hurt Melfina, he was going to be majorly pissed off!  
  
Gene knew that everyone was going to want to know where Melfina was eventually. It's not like Melfina to just disappear and he knew he couldn't play stupid for too long. But he didn't want to tell them. He knew they would take Melfina's side and get mad at him.  
  
Later on, while Gene and Jim were out back working on a client's car, Jim decided to bring it up once again. Hours had passed and Melfina still hadn't come back; something was definitely wrong. He had to find out what.  
  
"Hey, Gene, seriously,...where's Melfina? You know just as well as I do that it's very unlike her to be gone this long," Jim said. He was speaking in a serious tone; he felt like this was probably a serious situation. Little did he know...it was beyond serious.  
  
Gene immediately dropped his tool. He didn't know whether to just come out and tell him or beat around the bush like he had been doing all day. Jim wasn't stupid; he'd find out eventually.  
  
"Look...," Gene started, "I don't really want to talk about it. All I'm gonna say is that something happened between us last night. She got real upset, and...she walked out. I don't know where she is or if she's ever even coming back."  
  
"Gene! How could you just let her leave?!" Jim exclaimed. He figured this had been the case all along. And Gene didn't want to talk about what had exactly happened, but Jim had a pretty good idea.  
  
"Don't get all pissed off at me, Jim! That's why I didn't want to tell anyone in the first place! I knew you'd just make it all my fault!"  
  
"Because it is all your fault!" Jim yelled, but then his tone changed back to seriousness. "Gene, when you go out and do something stupid and end up hurting the people that really care about you, it is all your fault. You deserve everyone to be pissed off at you."  
  
Gene remained silent; he knew Jim had made a point.  
  
"How could you do that Melfina, Gene?!" Jim continued. "You know she doesn't deserve that! She cares about you so much. Even I see it and I don't even pay attention when you two are together. But even when you're not together...I can just see it in her expression and how she talks about you. But you...you don't even pay attention to her, Gene!"  
  
Still, Gene was silent. He just sat there staring off into space, but Jim knew he was hearing everything he was saying.  
  
Jim continued, "You act like she's nothing! You act like she means nothing to you when you mean everything to her!" Jim was actually surprised that these words were coming out of his mouth. But then again, he cared about Melfina too, and he didn't want to see her hurt.  
  
"She means everything to me," Gene whispered.  
  
"Well, you gotta funny way of showing it, Gene! A real funny way," Jim exclaimed. "You take complete advantage of her, Gene. You know that. You also know, or you should, that Melfina doesn't deserve to be taken advantage of. She doesn't deserve to be treated wrong."  
  
They were both silent for only a minute or two but it seemed like hours. Finally, Gene stood up and began walking off. As he walked, he mumbled, "Don't scold me, Jim. You're not my mother."  
  
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Well, that wraps about chapter 3! ^_^ Very nice, I think...um...alot of anger. lol But I'm very anxious to start writing chapter 4 cuz that's where it starts getting juicy! ^_~ Yep, some good ol' Harry and Melfina stuff. What we've all been waiting for...even me. lol ^_^;;; So, as I conclude this chapter, I'll leave you with these 3 questions: Will Melfina and Harry ever hook up? Will Jim ever stop yelling at Gene? Will I ever stop giving these chapters such ridiculous titles? We will never know...actually, we might...but only in chapter 4. I'll see you then. ^_~ 


	4. Getting Rid of Gene and Giving Harry Som...

I'd Do Anything  
  
  
  
By Kuroneko-sama07  
  
  
  
A/N: Hello there! ^_~ Sorry it took me a little while to get this chapter up. I've been dealing with alot of crap at home...-_-;; lol But anyways, it's in this chapter that everything starts to heat up! Lol, but no lemon...yet. ^_~ And now I know for sure that this fic is gonna make it to 5 chapters. So after this one, there's only one more. *sniff* It's gonna be so sad to see it end...lol, but seriously, I have gone through this fic really fast! Like, usually, it takes me FOREVER to finish multi-chapter fics. Like "You Don't Have to be Alone"...5 chapters and it took 5 months. LOL But anyways, I want to take this time to reply to some reviews...^^  
  
  
  
The one and only, Julia - Hey, finally I found someone who's, like you said, in the same boat as I am! Lol, it's about time! ^^ Ya know, people like us are rare...lol...thanks for reviewing! ^_^  
  
  
  
Kendo Bunny - Thanks for reviewing! Glad you like the story so far.^^ But about the whole bands and movie stuff, I totally agree with you, but I kinda had to include the Simple Plan stuff cuz this whole fic was inspired by that CD. ^_^;; lol And I couldn't make up my own movie titles cuz it wouldn't really sound cool if someone said: "Hey, have you seen that new movie 'Walking Through the Woods'?" LOL So I guess we just have to pretend...lol...  
  
  
  
babysue - Hey, I used what you said in your review for this chapter's title. ^_^;; lol Hope you don't mind! I just thought what you said was funny.^^ Harry's lonely, man! Gotta have some lovin'. ^^ Thanks for reviewing!  
  
  
  
And to everyone else like foolycoolyshippo, Estelle Stafford, Feye Morgan, babysallright, omg, and Jess - Thanks so much for reviewing! I really appreciate it and I'm so glad ya'll like my fic. ^_^ I thought I'd be getting hate reviews for writing this fic, but I'm getting love reviews! Lol, and I'm probably jinxing myself but who cares. ^^;; OK, on with Chapter 4!  
  
  
  
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Chapter 4: Getting Rid of Gene and Giving Harry Some Lovin'  
  
(Hmm...looks like the ridiculous titles will never end...*shrugs* oh well)  
  
  
  
Two days had passed since the incident between Melfina and Gene. She hadn't returned to Gene yet; she was still staying with Harry and Ron. However, she knew she couldn't avoid the inevitable. She had to go back to Gene sometime. She just wished that it was later rather than sooner.   
  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
As they walked down the busy sidewalks of downtown Cenntinal III, Harry gently took Melfina's hand in his. A little while ago, he would have expected her to shyly pull her hand away, but not anymore. Ever since that one night, Harry noticed that Melfina was acting differently around him. She wasn't pulling away from him or being all shy around him. Harry liked this new transformation. He liked her being so open with him.   
  
  
  
Aside from the noisy stores that lined the streets and the constant sound of chatter, Harry and Melfina walked in silence. They were just out running a few errands for Ron, but since they had already finished that up, they decided to head on over to a nearby cafe. Melfina had suggested it because it was a place she visited regularly just to relax and have a nice cup of coffee.   
  
  
  
Harry loved watching Melfina. He loved watching her walk. He loved watching her point out expensive jewelry in a store window and exclaim how beautiful it all was. He loved hearing her voice. He loved feeling her hand in his. He loved it all. He really was becoming more attracted to her, even though he didn't think it was possible for him to be even more attracted to her. He loved that feeling, but at the same time, he wished he didn't feel that way. He didn't think Melfina would return those feelings. And sure, he knew that she'd be there. Even if she did go back to Gene, she wouldn't forget about him. He knew that and loved knowing that. But he still couldn't help but to wish for more.   
  
  
  
As they contined to walk, unbeknownst to Melfina, Harry was completely lost in everything about her. But when she stopped and her hand tensed around his, he definitely noticed it.  
  
  
  
"What's wrong?" he asked.   
  
  
  
Melfina's eyes searched the crowds of people, but she couldn't seem to find what she was looking for. "I...thought I saw someone," she said.  
  
  
  
"Who?"  
  
  
  
"Uh...Gene. That's why I kinda freaked out," she said.  
  
  
  
Harry looked around, but didn't see Gene anywhere. "I don't see him, but I do see that red-headed guy over there. He looks a little like Gene, but it's not him."  
  
  
  
"Yeah, you're right," she said quietly. "I guess I was just mistaken. Harry...may we go back now? Back to your place?"  
  
  
  
"Uh, yeah, sure...but what about the cafe? I thought you wanted to go," he said.  
  
  
  
"I changed my mind. I'd just like to go back now...if that's okay," she said.  
  
  
  
"Yeah, it's okay," Harry said with a small smile. "Whatever you want, Melfina."  
  
  
  
Melfina returned his warm smile. Then, since they were on the other side of town, Harry quickly flagged down a taxi and got themselves a ride home.   
  
  
  
The taxi ride was quiet...neither of them knew what to say. Harry knew Melfina was worried about having to see Gene again. He just wished there was a way for her to just forget about Gene and stay with him forever. But Harry knew that wouldn't happen. He knew that she had to go talk to Gene. She couldn't just forget about it...because you don't forget about things like that so easily.   
  
  
  
Melfina knew that Harry knew what she was thinking about. But she didn't know what his thoughts were. She wondered if he was angry that she was thinking about Gene. But then, she also wondered if he was concerned for her. She wanted to think so because his hand still held hers, gentle but tight.  
  
  
  
When they arrived back at the apartment building, Melfina immediately entered Harry's room. She told him she was just going to fix her hair, but he knew better. He knew that she just wanted to be alone to think about her current situation, and he understood that. He just wished she would talk to him about it. Maybe she didn't realize that he wanted to help.   
  
  
  
He put up the items they bought for Ron that day, and when he finished, Melfina was still in his room. Not wanting to impose, but still wanting to talk with her, he softly knocked on the closed door.  
  
  
  
"Melfina? May I come in?" He felt kind of strange asking to enter his own bedroom, but he didn't want to invade Melfina's privacy.   
  
  
  
"Of course, Harry," came her voice from the other side of the door. She sounded quiet and almost like she was trying to sound strong but was having a hard time at it.   
  
  
  
He opened the door, walked in, and quietly shut it behind him. Melfina was standing at his desk with her back to him. She never turned around to face him, and Harry knew she was upset. He knew she didn't want him to see her tears again.  
  
  
  
He slowly walked over to her, not saying a word. He carefully slipped his arms around her waist and held her close to him. He felt her tense up a bit, but she soon became calm again. He gently nuzzled her neck like he had done once before when she was sad.   
  
  
  
"Melfina...," he whispered. He glanced up at her and could see the tears in her eyes.  
  
  
  
She placed her hands on his and a small, soft laugh escaped her lips. "This feels so nice...I wish it could always be this way."  
  
  
  
"It can, Melfina," Harry said in a hushed tone. "If you stay with me, it will always be this way."  
  
  
  
Melfina was silent; she wanted to believe him, but thoughts from before still surfaced in her mind. She had to talk to Gene. She didn't want to stay with him again; she actually did want to stay with Harry, but she couldn't move in with Harry and Ron just like that out of the blue...could she?  
  
  
  
Harry could feel that Melfina was on the verge of actually accepting his offer, but he also could feel that she was still concerned. He quickly removed his hands from around her waist, but their hands reunited again as he pulled her over to his bed. They sat down beside each other and leaned against the headboard.  
  
  
  
"Talk to me, Melfina," Harry said as he entwined his fingers with hers. "Don't you trust me enough to tell me what's on your mind?"  
  
  
  
"Well, yeah, I guess so. It's just...hard," she said.  
  
  
  
"Look, Melfina, I know you need to talk to Gene. I understand that. But can't you just come back and stay with me?"  
  
  
  
"I...I don't know, Harry...I feel so rude. Like I'm barging in on you and Ron," she replied.  
  
  
  
"You're not barging in at all! I love having you here and Ron enjoys your company, too, especially your cooking," he assured her with a smile.   
  
  
  
She smiled back at him. "I know, but...still. I don't want to be a burden."  
  
  
  
"A burden? You're not a burden; in fact, you're great help to us. I mean, let's face it, Ron and I aren't the cleanest people, so it's nice to have someone around to help us out with the dishes and clothes and the like. The apartment's looked real nice the past couple of days," he said with that same smile but then added, "But more importantly, and I speak for both Ron and myself when I say this,...we really enjoy having you around, Melfina."  
  
  
  
Melfina couldn't help but smile at hearing all of that. She really wanted to believe everything Harry said and stay with him. Everything sounded so perfect. She really felt like she could have a good life staying with Harry, but she still wasn't sure. She didn't know if she was willing to just give up everything so fast. Her friends, her home, her daily routine, her memories, Gene...she didn't know if she really wanted to step out of her comfort zone even if it meant being able to find something new and better.   
  
  
  
And then there was Harry's temper...he was known for lashing out unexpectedly at times. That did scare Melfina. She knew that he gets angry very easily, and when he does, it's almost like someone else takes over.   
  
  
  
As if reading her thoughts, Harry said, "Melfina...you do trust me, don't you? You know I won't hurt you, right?"  
  
  
  
She was so surprised that he asked that when she was just thinking about it, so it took her a few seconds to regain her composure. She nodded in response to his questions, but then replied, "I believe you, Harry. I know you don't want to hurt me, but I've noticed that sometimes when you get angry, it's almost like you can't control what you do. You get this look in your eyes...it scares me."  
  
  
  
Harry hated hearing that he sometimes frightened Melfina. But he knew that he does lose control when he's angry; it's just something he's always had a problem with.   
  
  
  
He reached his hand up to her face and gently caressed her cheek. "I'm sorry, Melfina. I know how I am, but you're the last person I want to hurt. If I ever hurt you in any way, in the end, I'd be the one with the most pain. I can't stand the thought of losing you," he said speaking in hushed tones once again.   
  
  
  
"Harry...if I do stay with you, what does that mean for us? Will things be...different?" she asked. She felt very awkward asking those questions, but she did need to know.  
  
  
  
"Things will be whatever you want them to be. Whatever relationship you want is fine with me. Although, I hope you chose the one of lovers," he said jokingly but with a sly grin.   
  
  
  
Melfina giggled. "Well, I don't know about that..."  
  
  
  
"If you don't want me to do anything, like kiss you, hug you, hold your hands, then that's fine. It's okay if you just want us to be friends," he said.  
  
  
  
"Okay, but...," Melfina said as she looked down at her hands in her lap. She noticed they were making nervous gestures, so she quickly shoved them between her knees so Harry wouldn't notice. "If you ever want to do those things, then...I don't mind."   
  
  
  
She felt deep blush spread across her cheeks as she said that. Actually, she didn't even know why she said that. Did she want him to do those things to her? She couldn't find an answer. A part of her was saying no, she had just come out of a relationship and it was too soon to be starting a new one. But then there was another part...that part was saying that she did want it. It was saying that she wanted Harry and all to herself, just like how he felt about her. She couldn't believe it...was she really falling for Harry? She knew she cared about him, but like this?  
  
  
  
Snapping herself out of her thoughts, she noticed that subconsciously, she was slowly moving closer to him. She also noticed that he was doing the same.   
  
  
  
Finally, when their faces were barely inches apart, Harry whispered, "Is it alright if I...kiss you?"  
  
  
  
A bright smile formed on Melfina's face. "You don't have to ask permission."  
  
  
  
Harry loved the sound of that. He gently placed his hand underneath her chin and lifted her head up so their eyes could meet. He smiled, then leaned in and their lips met in a tender kiss. After a few seconds, Harry reluctantly pulled away, but when he looked at Melfina, something told him that she wouldn't mind if he continued.   
  
  
  
He pressed his lips against hers once more, but this time he put more force and passion into it. He felt her lips open just slightly, and he thought that meant she was allowing him to slip his tongue inside. However, he must have thought wrong because when he did, Melfina abruptly broke their kiss. She wasn't mad, though; Harry saw that she was wearing a small smile.   
  
  
  
He rested his forehead against hers and placed his hands on the sides of her face. He smiled back at her as he gently rubbed his thumbs across her cheeks.  
  
  
  
"I'm sorry," he whispered.  
  
  
  
"It's okay," she whispered back.   
  
  
  
They were both silent for several seconds, but neither of them moved. But finally, Harry spoke up.  
  
  
  
"Melfina," he said quietly, "please don't leave me. Don't leave me for Gene again. It hurt enough the first time."  
  
  
  
Melfina was silent, but then she said, "You really don't mind if I stay here with you?"  
  
  
  
"I don't mind at all. I want you to."  
  
  
  
"So...what about Gene? When should I go talk to him?" Melfina asked.  
  
  
  
Harry pulled away from her and leaned back against the headboard again. "I think...you should go right now."  
  
  
  
"What? Right now?"  
  
  
  
"Yeah! Right now!" Harry exclaimed. "Just go, get it over with, and come back."  
  
  
  
"I don't know...right now? I haven't even thought about what I was going to say."  
  
  
  
"You don't have to think about anything. Just go there and tell him how you feel and what you're gonna do. Then, pack up, say good-bye, and get back over here. I mean, we're talking 10 minutes--tops!" Harry said jokingly, but sort of being serious at the same time.  
  
  
  
Melfina giggled at hearing that. She loved how he made it sound so simple. But she believed him. She stood up and walked over to the mirror. As she smoothed out a few wrinkles in her clothes, a thought hit her.  
  
  
  
"Harry, wait a minute! I just thought of something! If I stay here, where am I going to sleep? I don't want to kick you out of your bed anymore," she said.  
  
  
  
"Hmm...well, you're right. I don't really want to sleep on the couch anymore...but I don't want to make you sleep on the couch either, so maybe..." He grinned teasingly as he made a gesture to his double bed.  
  
  
  
"As you long as you don't try anything funny," Melfina said with a small laugh. "So...I'm going to go talk to Gene."  
  
  
  
"Yes, you do that," Harry said with a smile. "And come right back. I'll be waiting for you."  
  
  
  
Melfina returned the smile and said as she opened the door to let herself out, "Well, I'll see you in...10 minutes?"  
  
  
  
"Yep, 10 minutes," he said jokingly and then added, "Tops, remember."  
  
  
  
"Right," she said with a laugh. "See you later." And with that, she left.  
  
***  
  
Melfina slowly neared the place she used to call home. She walked to the door, but hesitated to knock. She had never felt like that with Gene before; she was never nervous when it came to him. But this time...it was a totally different situation.  
  
Finally, she her fist knocked on the door, and she just hoped no one was there or even if they were, she hoped they wouldn't answer the door. Unfortunately for Melfina, after just a few seconds, the door opened and she was standing face to face with Gene.  
  
He eyes grew wide as he saw that Melfina was standing on his doorstep. "...Melfina?"  
  
She forced a small smile onto her face to either show that she wasn't there to yell at him or to hide the fact that she was extremely nervous and felt like her heart was stuck in her throat. "Um...hi, Gene. May I...come in? I'd just like to talk with you, if that's okay."  
  
The wait for him to respond seemed like forever to Melfina. She thought that he would just reject her and slam the door in her face, but to her surprise, he let her inside.  
  
She walked inside and looked around at the familiar surroundings. It felt like it had been forever since she had been there, but everything was just as it was when she left. She took a seat on the couch, and Gene walked into the kitchen.  
  
"Where's everyone else?" Melfina asked.   
  
"I don't know. They're all out doing something, even Jim," he replied, but then asked, "Do you want anything to drink?"  
  
"No, thanks," she answered. She waited there and listened as Gene poured himself a drink. Then, he walked back into the living room and sat down on the loveseat across from her.   
  
"So...I haven't seen you in a while," he said casually. Melfina wondered why he was beating around the bush; he knew why she was there. But since he wouldn't bring up the conversation, she decided she would. She wasn't going to waste time waiting for him.  
  
"Gene...you know why I'm here," she said.  
  
There was a long pause of silence. Melfina tried to look Gene in the eyes but he kept avoiding her stare. Finally, he spoke.  
  
"Yeah, I know," he said, and then he sighed deeply. The sigh was either out of exasperation or aggravation--Melfina couldn't really tell. "So where have you been staying this whole time?"  
  
Melfina eyed him suspiciously; she wondered why he kept avoiding the subject, but she decided to answer him anyway. "Well...I've been staying at Harry's." She knew that would probably strike a sensitive cord in Gene, but she had to tell him sometime.   
  
"Harry?! You mean, Harry McDougal?!" he exclaimed.  
  
Melfina knew that would be his reaction. "Yeah...it was the only place I knew to go."  
  
"How'd you know to go to his place anyway? I didn't even know he was staying here! Is Ron here, too?"  
  
"Yes, and well, remember that night we watched that movie and I went to go rent the movie? Well, I saw Harry and Ron at the rental store. We talked for a while, and Harry gave me the addresss to their apartment," she said. She was trying to keep her cool, but it was hard because she was so scared that Gene would freak out.  
  
"You mean to tell me that you've just shacked up with two guys in their apartment for the past two days?! And Harry and Ron, no less!"  
  
That remark enraged Melfina. She couldn't believe he just said that. She did not "shack up" with Harry and Ron at their apartment. "Well, it was much better than staying here and watching you come home drunk with strange women!"  
  
Just then, they both became silent. Melfina couldn't believe those words came out of her mouth. She had never spoke like that before. But she knew that was something she had kept hidden inside of her for a while. She had to let it out. But at the same time, she felt bad about it. She felt like she shouldn't have yelled like that at Gene...even though he yells like that at her all the time.   
  
"Gene...I'm sorry," she said quietly.  
  
"No," he replied, "Don't apologize. You didn't do anything wrong...you never did anything wrong."  
  
"Gene..." Melfina whispered. She was unsure of what he was going to say next.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said quietly, and finally, he looked her straight in the eyes. Melfina could see why he was avoiding her eyes this whole time; his eyes were full of sadness and guilt and she could see it all.  
  
"It's okay...I forgive you," she said.   
  
"Are you going to stay with Harry now?" he asked calmly. Melfina was glad that they were speaking in civilized tones, but she could still sense all the emotions they were both feeling.   
  
She paused before answering. "Yes." She hated to tell him that, but she had no choice. That was her decision and she couldn't change her mind now.   
  
"Did you sleep with him?" he asked. His voice was still calm as before, but Melfina was surprised at his question.  
  
"N-No!" she answered, a little embarrased.   
  
Gene chuckled a little at hearing that Melfina was still uneasy on that sort of topic.  
  
"I still...care about you, you know," Gene said quietly. "I think that, no matter what, I always will."   
  
Melfina was silent and just listened to what he had to say.   
  
"I just want you to always know that, okay? Know that I really did care about you. I guess it just wasn't enough to hold you..."  
  
"No, that's not it, Gene. It's just that...I know you care about me. I just don't think you really want a long-term and serious relationship right now. That's all."  
  
"Yeah. Now that I think about it, you're probably right. I really don't want that type of relationship right now...but maybe later I will," he said.  
  
"We can still stay in touch, right? I mean, are we still going to be friends?" Melfina asked.  
  
"Yeah...At first, I thought that I wanted you out of my life forever, but now...I know that I don't ever want to lose you."  
  
Melfina couldn't help but smile. She loved hearing those words. Those words told her that everything would be okay.   
  
"Well, I guess I should get my stuff together," she said as she stood up.  
  
"Yeah, go ahead," he said.  
  
She walked to her room and packed up her clothes and any other items she might need. Then, she walked back in the living room and saw that Gene was still sitting on the couch. When she walked in, he stood up and faced her.  
  
There was a pause, but then Melfina smiled at him and said, "Thank you, Gene. I really needed to hear those words from you today. I'm glad we can still be friends because truthfully, I don't want you to be out of my life either."  
  
A small smile formed on his face as well and he walked her to the door. He placed his hand on the doorknob, but before opening it, he turned to her once again.  
  
"Before you go, there's something I have to tell you," he said.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"At the Leyline, before I went in to rescue you, I ran into Harry. He was all beat up, but he helped--" Melfina cut him off and finished his sentence for him.  
  
"He helped break through the security system. I know; I met him in cyberspace," she said.  
  
"Yeah, well, he asked me to do him a favor. He wanted me to tell you to sing that song for him one more time. I gave him my word that I'd give you his request. I guess I should have told you before, but I didn't, so I'm telling you now," Gene revealed.  
  
"Thanks for telling me, Gene. I really appreciate it," she said with a warm smile. "Well, I'll see you later, right?"  
  
"Yeah," he said as he opened the door for her.   
  
"Good-bye, Gene," she said as she stepped out.  
  
"Bye, Melfina," he said. He watched her walk off and then he closed the door.   
  
***********************************************************************  
  
Well, finally I got past Chapter 4! Now the good chapter is coming next! ^_^ lol It'll probably be out soon, much sooner than this one at least because I'm anxious to start writing it. I want to start writing it. *wink* ^^ lol Well, gotta go! I'm soooo tired right now, so I really need to go to bed. ^^ Remember, Chapter 4 is coming soon! I'll see you there. ^_~ 


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